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When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

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Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#91

Obviously it goes without saying, shop around. Fly to another country if you have to. Canadian/Mexican doctors are more than happy to take cash and will often charge less than half what they charge here. Obviously there's medical problems you can't travel for but more often than not you can. Also note that hospitals is one of the very few businesses that you have to get permission from other hospitals to open. It's a…

If this were as viable as you are implying, then everyone would do it already.

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#92

A quick suggestion. If things are really this dire sign up for platinum coverage under a total in-network HMO like Kaiser. Platinum 90 0/10 as an example. If you have serious medical costs these plans are MAJORLY subsidized because they don't discriminate on pre-existing conditions. You CANNOT go out of network.

That's the best thing about Kaiser. The care may only be adequate, but the no surprise out of network bills makes it better than any of the other plans.

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#93
post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Get them from somewhere else where they actually know the law. This is beyond outrageous!

Some people become lawyers without degrees too. They study law just like anybody else they just dont run themselves into school debt. These too can become judges. Edit: I couldnt find the term but now I did. You become a lawyer by becoming an apprentice of another lawyer. I assume these people become judges. In some states the only requirement to become a judge is to have been a lawyer. My original point was to take…

It is also called "reading the law". But you are right, you do it under the supervision of a licensed attorney. Reading the law does not get you out of sitting for the bar exam. Going to a top-10 law school does not get you out of sitting for the bar exam either, at least in California.

In Cali, the pass rate for the bar exam (3 days long) was around 45% when my wife took it (and passed it on first go! Yay!). So, sure, in CA you can sit for the bar exam after reading the law, and hang out your own shingle, and maybe become a judge. If you pass the bar exam, you are, and in IMHO deserve to be, good to go.

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. The idea is the insurance negotiates on my behalf. If they don't pay, I don't pay, and I don't understand how we arrived at the existing status quo.

Because not all providers are contracted with your insurance. If there exists an agreement between your insurance and the provider (I.e. in network), then the insurance company does pay for everything beyond the out of pocket maximum.

Remember kids, always have a friend at the door to the OR checking IDs and corporate affiliations while you're under to avoid unexpected bills! (The US system is literally insane)

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#95
wow, didn't know this happens over medical debt. I always thought just tons of letters and harassing phone calls. I know we don't have debtor prisons but if you are fined (say a guilty on a traffic ticket) and you don't pay, it can be considered contempt if you don't pay it and can then be jailed. I wonder if they are doing this for student loan debts, which some can't even be discharged in bankruptcy, and few states are suspending driver licenses over student loan debts similar to how they punish people who are behind on child support.

Also crazy you can be a judge without a law degree, even if you want to a be a lawyer there's a long process without going to law school, like years of a apprenticeship. Feel like that opens up the judge to being manipulated by lawyers. Just seems like more evidence that the so called justice system isn't really just. Then the whole private prisons and prisons not really focused on rehabilitation, people get released and don't know what to do on the outside so they reoffend and get comfortable with prison. I guess in prison at least you get food and probably warmer than being cold on the streets homeless. There's some books I've been wanting to read on these topics, but haven't got around to it yet. Apparently people unknowingly commits three felonies a day, and of course being ignorant is a excuse either as you must memorize and understand thousands of pages of legal gibberish.

Feel like our nation has veered so far off course than our original principles and ideals, and then if you watch the news... Very disturbing stuff happening all over the place. Really saddening. Plus I feel like our education system is dumbing people down, but that's an entire other topic. But not sure if any other countries are that much better, seems like everywhere has it's problems.

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#96
post #95

wow, didn't know this happens over medical debt. I always thought just tons of letters and harassing phone calls. I know we don't have debtor prisons but if you are fined (say a guilty on a traffic ticket) and you don't pay, it can be considered contempt if you don't pay it and can then be jailed. I wonder if they are doing this for student loan debts, which some can't even be discharged in bankruptcy, and few states…

”judge without a law degree”

That one is really shocking. I don’t even understand how this can work if the judge isn’t highly trained.

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#97
post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but not sure to many Americans would be better off with the free heath care North Korea offers.

actually, maybe read the linked paragraphs. from what I understand "many Americans" have basically no access to healthcare whatsoever (think homeless people for example) so your statement might not hold as tightly as you'd like...

Propaganda from the North Koreans is worse than no evidence. We don't know what is going on there as it is absurdly unlikely that the NK government are providing honest statistics or allowing anyone to check what is happening.

Cross-country comparisons are dicey at the best of times because a whole stack of basic cultural assumptions are violated. Unless there is a thriving medical tourism trade to NK it is unlikely that any American would benefit from copying North Korea.

There is a long list of about about 150 countries that they could look to before even brushing against the idea of looking to North Korea for good ideas.

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#98

This is happening in Kansas. Everyone feels bad, but not enough to actually vote based on the issue. That suggests it isn't really a major issue for them. Not only do they suffer, but numerous people in progressive states also suffer because right-leaning states like Kansas vote the country towards these types of repressive laws.

I live in Kansas. We currently have a Democratic governor who is quite progressive by this state's standards. She's in her job because the voters rejected another 4 years of Brownback-style austerity. Brownback ended his term with ~21 percent approval. Currently, the state still doesn't have the ACA Medicaid expansion, but we're very close to having enough votes in the legislature. I'm cautiously optimistic about nex…

I'd love to hear what you think of KS-Sen race if you have been keeping up?

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#99
post #80
post #3

My life was ruined by badly done, and even worse ultimately unneeded surgery. That privilege initially cost me many thousands, along with career and insurance going away, and the subsequent struggle to survive since has cost multiples of that. My entire future billed away. For a time I was able to avoid collectors because of a significant savings a frugal life had left me, but as time goes on you have to choose betwe…

I know people in HN hate to talk about politics, but this is a political problem. People, please vote for medicare for all candidates, it might not affect your life now, but you don't know what the future holds for you.

Medicare for all is not a solution. The solution is make health insurance act like insurance. Health service provider needs to post their price like all services and products. They need to compete for our business.

Re: When Medical Debt Collectors Decide Who Gets Arrested

#100

A quick suggestion. If things are really this dire sign up for platinum coverage under a total in-network HMO like Kaiser. Platinum 90 0/10 as an example. If you have serious medical costs these plans are MAJORLY subsidized because they don't discriminate on pre-existing conditions. You CANNOT go out of network.

That's the best thing about Kaiser. The care may only be adequate, but the no surprise out of network bills makes it better than any of the other plans.

Is this really true though? I have kaiser I think silver marketplace plan. While they did cover a good chunk of a semi-recent hospital cost (out of state emergency with no Kaiser in the state). I'm still getting new bills that Kaiser won't cover. But maybe I don't know enough to file complaint/forms to push back
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